The Blog

UnCommon Bodies Q&A: Sessha Batto

Pavarti K Tyler’s anthology, UnCommon Bodies , launches on Tuesday (but it’s available for pre-order on Amazonright now) and to celebrate I’m running a series of interviews with the authors from the book. Next up is Sessha Batto, talking about Made for This.

What attracted you to the UnCommon Bodies project?

I love the idea of imperfect people, they are the core of what I write. Everyone is attracted to external beauty and perfection, I like to peek inside and see the inner unique beauty of each individual. No matter how odd or quirky, everyone has something we can be attracted to.

What’s the setting for your story?

My story could be set anywhere, really. It is mostly an internal journey of transformation, the thought processes of the purposefully unnamed character. Purposefully unnamed because he could be anyone – me, you, a stranger we pass on the street.

What was the hardest thing about writing the story? Or was it just a walk in the park? 🙂

No story is a walk in the park. The hardest thing is to make the abstract concrete. To set out an internal journey in language that is accessible to everyone, to make it so any individual can place themselves in the character’s shoes and wonder if they would have made the same leaps, or what they would have done differently.

What do you hope readers will take away from the story?

That it could be them, or their friends or neighbors. To open their minds to the fact that change is often thrust upon us, not chosen, and what we make of that change is more important than where we start out. That even in the face of unimaginable loss, we can find our way to a better place. That unexpected turns often yield the greatest rewards.

Any plans to revisit the world of your story?

Not per se. The themes are ones I always revisit – transformation, internal journeys, the revealing of inner thoughts through sex, when we are most vulnerable and open.

Once readers have read your story, which of your books/stories should they read next?
Probably Sex Ray Specs, my collection of short fiction. There is something in it for everyone (I hope). Stories of love (but not romance), stories of hope and despair and transformation.

About Sessha Batto

Sword wielding Buddhist author of transgressive homoerotic fiction, Sessha turned to writing full time after a twenty year stint in video production editing, scripting and creating motion graphics.

Her novels include Strength of Will and the Shinobi Saga – Geisha, Shadow Wolf and the soon to be released Ripples. Her short stories are included in the anthology Sex Ray Specs. Her Celtic fairy tale Amadan na Briona is part of eightcuts gallery’s Once Upon a Time in a Gallery exhibit. Her short story The Poetry Game is included in New Sun Rising:Stories for Japan, an anthology for tsumani relief.

Originally from Belfast, she lives in the States with her husband, son, three cats and too many swords.